TEMPE – After scoring win No. 500 this past weekend, Sheila McInerney and No. 22 Arizona State (5-1, 0-0 Pac-12) travel to Lexington, Kentucky, and Columbus, Ohio, to put their four-match win-streak on the line against two ranked opponents this weekend.
While the Devils and Buckeyes are familiar with one another, having met three times in the past three seasons, the matchup with the Wildcats will be a first for ASU.
ASU comes into the weekend having won four-straight and five of its last six with its only loss on the season coming on the road against No. 13 Oklahoma State, 4-3.
Although the loss to the Cowgirls is the Devils' lone blemish this season, perfection is common on McInerney's squad as two doubles tandems and Sasa Klanecek are still undefeated in dual-match play this season.
Playing on court six in every match this season, Klanecek has racked up a 6-0 record and hasn't dropped a set in a win since the fall. She opened her spring campaign with two straight defeats, but has since been on a tear.
In doubles play, McInereny switched things up a bit in the Devils' last outing, but the results were still the same as they took the doubles point for the sixth-straight match.
Ilze Hattingh and Lauryn John Baptiste are 6-0, and Nicole Fossa Huergo/Klanecek are 5-0. Klanecek was paired with Savannah Slasyman against Santa Clara and the new duo still came away with the win on court three, bringing Klanecek's doubles record in match play to 6-0.
No. 107 Slaysman has righted the ship after a slow start to her sophomore campaign and now has the second-best record on the team at 5-1.
Both opponents will be tough matchups for the six-woman Devils, but wins this weekend would put them at 7-1 with three ranked victories heading into the last weekend before conference play opens.
The Devils and Wildcats take to the court Friday at 10 a.m. MST, ASU's matchup with Ohio State gets started Sunday at 10 a.m.
The last time the Buckeyes and Devils met, ASU fell 4-0 at the Whiteman Tennis Center. It was the second of two-straight losses for ASU and the first two-match slide since 2016.
Rankings Update
This weekend's rankings marked the first computerized update of the season, brushing aside the previous coaches rankings and causing a huge shift in the top-25.
While the ITA/Oracle rankings now include 50 teams, the Sun Devils were barely affected by the switch to a points-based system as they debuted at No. 22, just two spots below where they were in last week's coaches poll.
With the spring season kicking into gear and team schedules evening out, the singles and doubles rankings also saw some changes, including a rise in rank for Savannah Slaysman.
Slaysman jumped to 107 in the latest update with the help of her three-match win-streak and 5-1 record overall.
The new court one occupant, Lauryn John-Baptiste came in at No. 84 on the list. She has three wins over ranked opponents in 2018 and will likely face two more this weekend in Lexington and Columbus.
The Sun Devils' highest-achieving doubles duo fell out of the rankings, but the team of John-Baptiste/Hattingh is still undefeated on court two this season.
Slaysman/Kolarova comes in at No. 27, but with McInerney switching up the lineups last weekend, it's been more than two weeks since the pairing has hit the court together.
Among the Pac-12, ASU is the third-highest ranked team behind No. 9 UCLA and 17 Oregon. Defending conference champion Stanford sits at No. 36, in part because of their lack of matches played, and Washington (32) and Cal (48) are the other Pac-12 representatives in the top-50.
Doubles Dominance
Arizona State's fall campaign saw the Devils put on a show in doubles, upending some of the best tandems in the nation en route to a 17-6 record.
So far this spring, the Sun Devils have continued the trend and have been dominant in doubles play, winning the point in all six of their dual matches in 2018 and compiling a team doubles record of 13-4, with one team sitting at 6-0 and another at 5-0.
Ilze Hattingh and Lauryn John-Baptiste have been on a tear on court two, racking up seven-straight wins, and all six in each of their dual match appearances as a duo.
Ahead of them on court one, Kolarova/Slaysman had a tough start to the season but are still the 27th-ranked tandem in the nation, and on court three, Sasa Klanecek and senior Nicole Fossa Huergo have been just as good as Hattingh/John-Baptiste as they have also gone 5-0 in dual match play this season.
In the match against Santa Clara, Slaysman and Klanecek played together and won on court three, and Fossa Huergo/Kolarova had their match suspended because the Devils had already clinched the doubles point with wins on courts three and two.
Get to know the WIldcats
Quarterfinalists a year ago in the SEC Championships, the Kentucky Wildcats came into 2018 with high expectations and have lived up to them so far, boasting a 6-2 record and sitting at No. 20 in the nation.
Coach Carlos Drada led the 2017 squad to the second round of the NCAA tournament and wrapped up the campaign with the team's highest ranking since 2006.
The Wildcats have two ranked players in singles in No. 50 Akvile Parazinskaite and No.117 Justina Mikulskyte, both juniors from Lithuania.
Mami Adachi and Emily Fanning are UK's highest ranked doubles duo, coming in at No. 42.
Get to know the Buckeyes
Coach Melissa Schaub's Buckeyes have become powerhouses in collegiate tennis in recent years, making runs to the quarterfinals and semifinals of the NCAA Tournament, and winning back-to-back Big Ten Tournament titles in the past two seasons.
Their 3-1 record has wins over two ranked opponents, including No. 15 Kansas and ASU's first opponent of the weekend Kentucky. The Buckeyes' lone loss this season came at the hands of No. 10 Wake Forest.
The 64th and 72nd ranked women in the NCAA play for the Buckeyes in Shiori Fukuda and Olivia Sneed. Sneed defeated Sun Devil sophomore Savannah Slaysman back in the fall.
In doubles play, three Ohio State duos earn rankings, however, all of them contain two of the same women in Anna Sanford and Fukuda.
Fukuda/Sanford are the No. 15 tandem, Fukuda/Tyrina are No. 44 and Sneed/Sanford come in at No. 50.
While the Devils and Buckeyes are familiar with one another, having met three times in the past three seasons, the matchup with the Wildcats will be a first for ASU.
ASU comes into the weekend having won four-straight and five of its last six with its only loss on the season coming on the road against No. 13 Oklahoma State, 4-3.
Although the loss to the Cowgirls is the Devils' lone blemish this season, perfection is common on McInerney's squad as two doubles tandems and Sasa Klanecek are still undefeated in dual-match play this season.
Playing on court six in every match this season, Klanecek has racked up a 6-0 record and hasn't dropped a set in a win since the fall. She opened her spring campaign with two straight defeats, but has since been on a tear.
In doubles play, McInereny switched things up a bit in the Devils' last outing, but the results were still the same as they took the doubles point for the sixth-straight match.
Ilze Hattingh and Lauryn John Baptiste are 6-0, and Nicole Fossa Huergo/Klanecek are 5-0. Klanecek was paired with Savannah Slasyman against Santa Clara and the new duo still came away with the win on court three, bringing Klanecek's doubles record in match play to 6-0.
No. 107 Slaysman has righted the ship after a slow start to her sophomore campaign and now has the second-best record on the team at 5-1.
Both opponents will be tough matchups for the six-woman Devils, but wins this weekend would put them at 7-1 with three ranked victories heading into the last weekend before conference play opens.
The Devils and Wildcats take to the court Friday at 10 a.m. MST, ASU's matchup with Ohio State gets started Sunday at 10 a.m.
The last time the Buckeyes and Devils met, ASU fell 4-0 at the Whiteman Tennis Center. It was the second of two-straight losses for ASU and the first two-match slide since 2016.
Rankings Update
This weekend's rankings marked the first computerized update of the season, brushing aside the previous coaches rankings and causing a huge shift in the top-25.
While the ITA/Oracle rankings now include 50 teams, the Sun Devils were barely affected by the switch to a points-based system as they debuted at No. 22, just two spots below where they were in last week's coaches poll.
With the spring season kicking into gear and team schedules evening out, the singles and doubles rankings also saw some changes, including a rise in rank for Savannah Slaysman.
Slaysman jumped to 107 in the latest update with the help of her three-match win-streak and 5-1 record overall.
The new court one occupant, Lauryn John-Baptiste came in at No. 84 on the list. She has three wins over ranked opponents in 2018 and will likely face two more this weekend in Lexington and Columbus.
The Sun Devils' highest-achieving doubles duo fell out of the rankings, but the team of John-Baptiste/Hattingh is still undefeated on court two this season.
Slaysman/Kolarova comes in at No. 27, but with McInerney switching up the lineups last weekend, it's been more than two weeks since the pairing has hit the court together.
Among the Pac-12, ASU is the third-highest ranked team behind No. 9 UCLA and 17 Oregon. Defending conference champion Stanford sits at No. 36, in part because of their lack of matches played, and Washington (32) and Cal (48) are the other Pac-12 representatives in the top-50.
Doubles Dominance
Arizona State's fall campaign saw the Devils put on a show in doubles, upending some of the best tandems in the nation en route to a 17-6 record.
So far this spring, the Sun Devils have continued the trend and have been dominant in doubles play, winning the point in all six of their dual matches in 2018 and compiling a team doubles record of 13-4, with one team sitting at 6-0 and another at 5-0.
Ilze Hattingh and Lauryn John-Baptiste have been on a tear on court two, racking up seven-straight wins, and all six in each of their dual match appearances as a duo.
Ahead of them on court one, Kolarova/Slaysman had a tough start to the season but are still the 27th-ranked tandem in the nation, and on court three, Sasa Klanecek and senior Nicole Fossa Huergo have been just as good as Hattingh/John-Baptiste as they have also gone 5-0 in dual match play this season.
In the match against Santa Clara, Slaysman and Klanecek played together and won on court three, and Fossa Huergo/Kolarova had their match suspended because the Devils had already clinched the doubles point with wins on courts three and two.
Get to know the WIldcats
Quarterfinalists a year ago in the SEC Championships, the Kentucky Wildcats came into 2018 with high expectations and have lived up to them so far, boasting a 6-2 record and sitting at No. 20 in the nation.
Coach Carlos Drada led the 2017 squad to the second round of the NCAA tournament and wrapped up the campaign with the team's highest ranking since 2006.
The Wildcats have two ranked players in singles in No. 50 Akvile Parazinskaite and No.117 Justina Mikulskyte, both juniors from Lithuania.
Mami Adachi and Emily Fanning are UK's highest ranked doubles duo, coming in at No. 42.
Get to know the Buckeyes
Coach Melissa Schaub's Buckeyes have become powerhouses in collegiate tennis in recent years, making runs to the quarterfinals and semifinals of the NCAA Tournament, and winning back-to-back Big Ten Tournament titles in the past two seasons.
Their 3-1 record has wins over two ranked opponents, including No. 15 Kansas and ASU's first opponent of the weekend Kentucky. The Buckeyes' lone loss this season came at the hands of No. 10 Wake Forest.
The 64th and 72nd ranked women in the NCAA play for the Buckeyes in Shiori Fukuda and Olivia Sneed. Sneed defeated Sun Devil sophomore Savannah Slaysman back in the fall.
In doubles play, three Ohio State duos earn rankings, however, all of them contain two of the same women in Anna Sanford and Fukuda.
Fukuda/Sanford are the No. 15 tandem, Fukuda/Tyrina are No. 44 and Sneed/Sanford come in at No. 50.